Weekend Update

Happy 4th of July! It has been lovely here, after a very humid start to the weekend that culminated in a ferocious thunderstorm Friday evening. Since then, it has just been lovely. I've been hard at work, hauling dirt around the yard. I filled in behind the chicken house, and underneath the brooder shed with rocky gravel. I moved barrow-load after barrow-load of topsoil into my new raised bed in the back. After two days of moving dirt, my leg and arm muscles start twitching every time I think about picking up a shovel...
This is where having a handyman around to help with odd jobs comes in handy. He came yesterday morning, declaring an intent to start digging some post holes. I said, sure go ahead, and off he trotted into the backyard with his digger. About twenty minutes later, he calls out "uh...oh..." and back I trotted. Then we both stood back there, peering into a hole, staring at a wire where no wire should be. That's right--I completely forgot about calling digger hotline, and seriously, when they've been out before, they've never marked the yard back there when they've marked the whole thing for underground lines. It doesn't appear to be electrical (thank god) but its something, not cut all the way through but definitely showing some shiny wires. Oh dear oh dear oh dear. All digging halted. So far, no visitation from anybody claiming loss of phone service or cable. Jack believes it is a "dead" line. I called digger hotline (belatedly) and they'll be coming out to paint line markings. If they mark one there, I suppose I need to find out which utility owns it and fess up to a major boo-boo. At $2000 for the fine for digging "illegally", I really really really really hope that this line goes to nothing at present. (I also really really hope it isn't something going to grumpy neighbor's house.) Ahhhggggg. This situation just keeps exploding into new fires, every time I turn around!
So today, I set Jack to work moving dirt and filling holes and helping me lay ground-retension systems in the backyard. The dogs have dug to China, and it is really really dangerous out there--you can't walk for falling into holes--so after spreading oodles of topsoil on the barren earth, we laid a layer of chicken wire topped by a layer of Earth Wise straw mat, which I watered heavily and spread with organic Dutch white clover seeds. I need to go back to Fleet Farm and buy more chicken wire, straw mat, garden staples, temporary fencing, and shady seed mix. Jack will return on Wednesday, hopefully by then I'll have been visited by the digger-marker fairy and will find out how screwed I am. Making friends all over the place, that's your friendly neighbor Cris all over!